St. Patrick's Market is one of three public markets created in Toronto in the 19th century along with St. Lawrence Market and St. Andrew's Market. The current structure on the lot was built in 1912 and was designated a heritage site by the City of Toronto in 1975. [1]
The lot at what is now 238 Queen Street West (at John Street) was designated for a public market for St. Patrick's Ward in 1836 when D’Arcy Boulton bequeathed the property to the city with the express provision that it was to be used forever as a public market. [2] The original market building, a two-story Italianate architecture structure with a tower, was built in 1854. [2]
The current single story Neo-Georgian/Colonial Revival structure was built in 1912, [3] after the previous structure was destroyed by fire. [1] A. Stork & Sons, founded by Abraham Stork in 1897, originally operated a small stall in the market but grew to become one of the biggest poultry processors in Toronto, leasing and occupying the entire building by the 1930s, advertising itself as a live poultry slaughterhouse with a large sign painted on the building's frontage promising "fresh killed poultry and cut up chickens" for sale on the premises. [4] [5] [6] [7]
In 1909, 1911, and again in 1939, the city petitioned the province's estate commissioners to free it from the obligation to operate the property perpetually as a market, but had its attempt to obtain unrestricted ownership of the property rejected. [8]
Stork & Sons closed after the mid -1980s and, in 1988, the city signed a 50-year lease with Market Inc. to host an "exciting retail mini food market" [9] with "an ambiance similar to the St. Lawrence Market", [9] including a bakery, and stands selling meat, seafood, fruit, vegetables and "food stands with prepared and unprepared meals within its market". [10]
The leasing agreement proved controversial, as the company that won the contract and rebranded the building "the Queen Street Market" for several years, operated it more along the lines of a food court, with tenants that included various take out stands and, at one point, a Ben & Jerry's. [10] Responding to pressure from the city, Market Inc's owner, George Friedman, renovated the building, restored the St. Patrick's name, at least in part, and promised to "reopen as a market offering of different types of foods - both raw and ready to eat." [9]
By 2011, Friedman was promising to turn the market into a food court, to be called "The Grove", focusing on healthy organic food with a policy requiring vendors to refrain from using "artificial flavours, colouring and hormones," renting to a variety of vendors who would offer unprepared food as well as those offering take-out, and to run an open air farmer's market in the space behind the building. [11] [12]
However, by 2015, the venue, now called the Queen Street Live Fresh Food Market, was largely empty aside from a tea shop, the BakeryHaus bakery, the Jerk Joint which was a jerk chicken take out stand, and a dessert shop specializing in chocolate and baklava. [13] [14]
The market was forced to close temporarily in July 2017 by the department of public health after mice were found eating baklava in one of the stalls after dark. [15]
In 2018, the now empty building again underwent renovations, this time to rebrand it as "Queen Street Eats". The leaseholder promised there would be seven vendor stalls, washrooms, upgraded kitchens, a graffiti wall, and a seating area for guests – which, the city had not previously permitted. [15]
In the fall of 2019, the city filed an application in superior court to terminate the lease alleging breaches of the agreement by the leaseholder, including failing to operate a food market and to provide audited financial statements. [16] On December 12, 2019, the superior court ruled that the lease agreement had been violated, terminated the lease and returned control of the vacant market to the city, while also ordering the former leaseholder, Market Inc., to pay the city damages and unpaid rent. [17] Mayor John Tory said after the ruling that "Now is the beginning of a new process because of the court decision that will allow to have all options on the table. I hope it will be something that will involve a clever use that attracts the community in that might involve artists and retailers, and others... The bottom line is we want to bring that space alive because it has been in a dormant state for far too long and I am just happy the legal system saw our way of looking at that and allows us now to get on with some very exciting plans for a very exciting part of that community." [18]
CF Toronto Eaton Centre, commonly referred to simply as Eaton Centre, is a shopping mall and office complex in the downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is owned and managed by Cadillac Fairview (CF). It was named after the Eaton's department store chain that once anchored it before the chain went defunct in the late 1990s.
St. Lawrence is a neighbourhood located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The area, a former industrial area, is bounded by Yonge, Front, and Parliament Streets, and the Canadian National railway embankment. The Esplanade off Yonge St., lined with restaurants, cafés and hotels runs through the middle of the area. In previous times, the area was sometimes referred to as 'St. Lawrence Ward' or more often today as 'St. Lawrence Market', synonymous with the large retail vendor market which is the neighbourhood's focal point. The area is the site of a large city-sponsored housing project of the 1970s, which revitalized an old brownfields area. The boundaries of the St Lawrence Neighbourhood Association and the St Lawrence Market BIA are somewhat larger than those noted above. Both groups have boundaries that extend from Yonge to Parliament Streets and Queen Street East to the rail corridor.
King Street is a major east–west commercial thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was one of the first streets laid out in the 1793 plan of the town of York, which became Toronto in 1834.
Street food is food sold by a hawker or vendor on a street or at another public place, such as a market, fair, or park. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumption. Some street foods are regional, but many have spread beyond their regions of origin. Most street foods are classified as both finger food and fast food and are typically cheaper than restaurant meals. The types of street food vary between regions and cultures in different countries around the world. According to a 2007 study from the Food and Agriculture Organization, 2.5 billion people eat street food every day. While some cultures consider it to be rude to walk on the street while eating, a majority of middle- to high-income consumers rely on the quick access and cheap service of street food for daily nutrition and job opportunities, especially in developing countries.
The St. Lawrence Market South building is a major public market building in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the southwest corner of Front and Lower Jarvis Streets. Along with the St. Lawrence Market North and St. Lawrence Hall, it comprises the St. Lawrence Market complex. The current building was opened in 1902, incorporating the 1845 Toronto City Hall building into the structure. The building was restored during the 1970s.
Reading Terminal Market is an enclosed public market located at 12th and Arch Streets in Center City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It opened originally in 1893 under the elevated train shed of the Reading Railroad Company after the city of Philadelphia advocated to move public markets from the streets into indoor facilities for both safety and sanitary reasons.
The Distillery District is a commercial and residential district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, east of downtown, which contains numerous cafés, restaurants, and shops housed within heritage buildings of the former Gooderham and Worts Distillery. The 13 acres (5.3 ha) district comprises more than forty heritage buildings and ten streets, and is the largest collection of Victorian-era industrial architecture in North America.
Western Market is one of the oldest structures in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. The current structure, built in 1906, was the North Block of the original Western Market. It is the oldest surviving market building in the city. The former South Block was demolished in 1981 and its site is now occupied by the Sheung Wan Complex.
Chelsea Market is a food hall, shopping mall, office building and television production facility located in the Chelsea neighborhood of the borough of Manhattan, in New York City. The Chelsea Market complex occupies an entire city block with a connecting bridge over Tenth Avenue to the adjacent 85 Tenth Avenue building. The High Line passes through the 10th Avenue side of the building.
Downtown Toronto is the main central business district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located entirely within the district of Old Toronto, it is approximately 16.6 square kilometres in area, bounded by Bloor Street to the northeast and Dupont Street to the northwest, Lake Ontario to the south, the Don Valley to the east, and Bathurst Street to the west. It is also the home of the municipal government of Toronto and the Government of Ontario.
The Jacksonville Landing was a festival marketplace in Downtown Jacksonville, Florida, at the intersection of Independent Drive and Laura Street, along the Jacksonville Riverwalk. It was built by the Rouse Company for $37.5 million, opened in 1987, and officially closed after the 4th of July festivities in 2019. Demolition began about October 8, 2019. The 126,000 square feet (11,706 m2) center was comparable to New York City's South Street Seaport, Boston's Faneuil Hall, and Miami's Bayside Marketplace, all developed by Rouse.
St. Andrew's Playground is a small park in downtown Toronto. It is located at the 450 Adelaide Street West, at the northwest corner of Brant St and Adelaide. It has a playground for children and an off-leash area for dogs that is surrounded by a short fence, with an accessible water fountain for pets, children, and adults. A Heritage Toronto plaque in the northwest corner describing the history and significance of the park was installed in 2007.
The Ontario Food Terminal is the main produce distribution centre for Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located at 165 The Queensway at Park Lawn Road, north of the Gardiner Expressway, and west of the Humber River. The U-shaped building occupies 1,740,000 square feet (162,000 m2) of a 40 acres (16 ha) site and includes 80,000 square feet (7,400 m2) of cold storage and is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for deliveries. Annually some one million vehicles arrive at the centre delivering produce from across North America or leave to distribute it to stores and restaurants across the city. It is the largest such facility in Canada, and the third largest in North America after those in Chicago and Los Angeles.
St. Lawrence Market is a major public market in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located along Front Street East and Jarvis Street in the St. Lawrence neighbourhood of downtown Toronto. The public market is made up of two sites adjacent to one another west of Jarvis Street, St. Lawrence Market North, and St. Lawrence Market South. St. Lawrence Market South is situated south of Front Street East, and is bounded by The Esplanade to the south. St. Lawrence Market North is situated north of Front Street East, and is bounded by St. Lawrence Hall to the north.
St. Lawrence Market North is a public market in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It hosts a variety of markets, including a farmers' market, an antique market and Christmas trees daily from mid-Nov. to Dec. 24. The site has been a farmer's market since 1803. Several buildings have been built for the Market North, the most recent in 1968. The new Market North structure is now under construction. The St. Lawrence Market combines the North building, the St. Lawrence Hall and the St. Lawrence Market South building.
The Great Fire of Toronto of 1849, April 7, 1849, also known as the Cathedral Fire, was the first major fire in the history of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Much of the Market Block, the business core of the city, was wiped out, including the predecessor of the current St. James Cathedral. The 1831 building of the Toronto City Hall and St. Lawrence Market south of King was damaged and was torn down.
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The Esplanade is an east-west street along the central waterfront of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This neighbourhood consists of generally low-rise and mid-rise housing - condominiums, public housing, cooperatives and some town homes between Jarvis and Parliament Streets south of Front Street. The stretch between Scott Street and Market Street is a popular restaurant area.
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